Fight
by Steefwaterbutter
Summary: All Eren ever wanted to do was fight these titans. Armin... not so much. But as is the way with fighting enormous man-eating titans, things don't always go as planned. So what happens when Armin becomes Eren's only hope for survival? What happens when Eren is broken and the thing he wants most slips out of his grasp? AU of Battle for Trost District, two shot.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Welp, if you're reading this then I must have done something right! The summary for this story was the hardest one I've ever written, to be honest. I literally spent two hours spinning my wheels, trying to figure out the right words to put. This story is pretty close to my heart. One because I absolutely adore Attack on Titan, and two, it started out as a shameless h/c fic... but then it got really deep and angsty and it was made using a story structure I've never tried before. Y'see, this is just the first part, first "arc" of the story. But more on that in the next chapter._

 _Well, I should just stop blathering now and just let you get to the story_ _._

* * *

 _FIGHT_

 _Part One_

* * *

Armin stood, unable to move, unable to tear his eyes away from the carnage. So many screams. So much blood.

From his place on the roof he could see them, the titans, the giants, smoke billowing from their naked bodies as they lumbered down the narrow streets of Troth, hemmed in by piles of rubble that had one been homes.

 _Why won't I just move?_ Armin though, his hands clutching the side of his head. A whimper escaped his mouth. For every moment he stood there, more people died. He was supposed to protect them, to give his life so that the people of Trost could make it to safety behind Wall Rose.

 _How can I stand here? Why aren't I_ moving _?_

But... what was the point? At any moment either the colossal or armoured titan could show up to destroy Wall Rose as well.

They were all just animals waiting in their pen, waiting for the slaughter.

Just then, a yell crashed through Armin's ears, a battle cry, almost. A scream that had been bottled up for five years. One that had finally been let loose.

Eren.

Armin dared to raise his head, and saw his friend, reduced to nothing more than a blur as he flew through the air. Again and again he struck out with his anchor, that barbed hook connected to his belt by a long steel rope, and pushed down on the gas which propelled him forward. He was heading straight towards a titan, one of the fifteen meter ones. Fighting back. Doing everything Armin himself could not do.

 _Please,_ Armin whispered silently. _Please... don't let it kill you._

He watched as Eren slid to a stop on the roof just behind the titan. He watched as Eren's anchor embedded into the beast's shoulder, as Eren used it to pull himself up and forward, blades ready to slash the titan's nape, their single weak spot.

He stood and stared as the the titan turned, swatting at Eren like a human swatting at a mere fly. His breath caught in his throat as he saw Eren go flying.

Then Eren's body smashed into the roof. The snap of his leg sounded like a gunshot. Tiles sprayed out on either side as he slid across the roof, a bruised, bloodied mess.

Armin raised a hand to his mouth, nausea rising up his throat. But he couldn't tear his eyes away. He saw the titan step closer to Eren. It was grinning.

They were always grinning. Even when they were being sliced to bits, still that sickening grin stretched from ear to ear. It was almost as if, devoid of intelligence as they were, they knew that they were the stronger ones. That there was little to fear from these puny humans.

But then Eren stirred, lifted his head to glare at the titan. Blood was sliding down his face in thin trails, his leg was bent at an awkward angle, but still he rose to his feet, striking out with his anchor. It connected with the building just to the left of the titan. He was going to try and kill it.

 _Eren, no!_ Armin tried to scream. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. _You can't do this by yourself!_

The titan seemed to giggle. Almost in slow motion, it reached out and pulled at the steel cord, like a curious child. And Eren plummeted out of Armin's sight.

 _No..._ Armin thought, his breath hitching. _No... he's... it's going to ki_ —

Then Eren screamed. It was a loud, almost animalistic scream, and it was coming from his friend. His loud, hothead friend who had gotten him out of trouble more times that he could count. Who was always there when Armin needed him.

And now Eren needed him.

But he couldn't move.

Why wouldn't he just move?

"I'm sorry," Armin gasped, grabbing handfuls of his blond hair and falling to his knees. "I'm sorry, I—I can't. I'm sorry. I'm not good enough."

 _"Of course you're good enough."_

The memory drifted across Armin's eyes, a distant memory. Him. Eren. Sitting on the narrow wall, a river gurgling past just beside them. The sun beating down on their backs, an open book between them.

"No, no, I'm not! I'll never learn to read!" Eren huffed and slammed the book shut.

"C'mon, you'll get it," Armin said. With gentle fingers, he lifted the cover of the book. "You're the most determined person I know! If you can't learn to read, no one can."

Eren gave a snort, crossed his arms.

"Eren," Armin said, "I believe in you."

 _"I believe in you."_

It was what Eren had said during their training. Time and time again, when Armin had been one bruise away from quitting.

 _"I believe in you."_

Armin's head snapped up. His hands slipped down to clip the handles to his swords. With one fluid motion, he unsheathed them, the loud _shink_ of metal on metal like music to his ears. He shot out the anchor and soared into the air, heading towards where the sound had come from.

Then he saw it. The titan. It was bending over a limp Eren, its hand stretching out...

"Hey!" Armin yelled. " _Hey!_ Over here!"

The titan turned, a big smile on its bearded face. It lurched towards Armin, who shot his anchor into a building, launching himself out of the way. He had almost made it to the next roof when several large fingers wrapped around his small body.

Armin's eyes shot wide open, but he wanted to close them. He wanted to shut them tight and not open them until it was all over. But instead he watched as he rose up to meet the titan. A bit of drool dribbled down its chin, its eyes lit up in anticipation. Armin would have shuddered, but the titan's grip was so tight he could not even do that. He couldn't even force a scream from his mouth.

He was going to die. He was going to be killed. He would never see the ocean, the fields of ice, all those beautiful thing he had read about...

The stronger killing the weaker. That's how this cruel, beautiful world worked, didn't it?

These titans were no different than the bullies that used to torment his back when he was a child. Except this time it was all of humanity fighting against these monsters. And losing.

What was the point?

Everyone knew stronger ones always win.

The titan let out a roar. Its grip on Armin weakened. One of its legs began to buckle. Armin began to struggle, twisting his body, trying to reach his swords. The titan roared again, and let go. For a second Armin was falling, then he struck out with his anchor, tasting the burn of acid in his mouth. He wanted to throw up, he wanted to curl up inside himself, but there was no time for that.

His boots connected with the building, then he pushed off, launching himself towards the weak spot at the back of the titan's neck. He let out a cry and slashed with his twin blades.

The titan's body jerked. Then it stumbled. With a crash that shook the earth, its enormous body hit the ground.

For a second Armin simply stared, hanging limp from the ropes that held him midair. Then he turned caught a glimpse of black-brown hair by the titan's leg.

Eren.

Armin dropped to the ground. As soon as his boots his the cobblestones, he was racing over to his friend.

"Eren!"

Eren didn't respond. He lay sprawled across the ground, his leg twisted at an awkward angle, his face drenched in blood. One of his blades was steaming, wet with titan blood.

It had been Eren. Eren who had distracted the titan so Armin could get free.

"Eren," Armin said again. His knees crumbled to the ground; he reached out with a shaking hand to touch his friend's shoulder. "Please... please don't be dead."

Nothing.

Something wet was running down Armin's cheeks. A sob rose in his throat.

He threw himself down and wrapped his arms around Eren's lifeless body, his own hitching. He couldn't lose Eren. After all he'd lost, he couldn't lose Eren too. Not his best friend. Not the friend who'd saved him so many times, in so many ways.

Then...

A low thump sounded in Armin's ear. Then another. And another. Heartbeat.

Eren gave a weak cough. "A-Ar... min?" he mumbled.

Fresh tears flooded Armin's eyes, his entire body began to tremble. "You're alive." His grip around Eren's body tightened. "We're... we're both alive."

A strangled laugh escaped his throat.

For a long moment neither of them spoke. Then Eren reached up his arm and wrapped it around Armin's shoulders, the touch soft and firm at the same time. Comforting.

"We did it, Armin," he said, how voice cracked and dry. "We brought down a titan."

And Armin smiled though his tears, felt his hitching breaths ease.

Because sometimes the strong didn't kill the weak. Sometimes the weak came together and overcame the strong.

* * *

 _To Be Continued..._

 _(Also, reviews make my day! I would LOVE to know what you guys think!)_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Now, in a few of my more popular one shots, I've found people usually want a second part. So when I finished the first part, I realized people would most likely want a second part, since Armin and Eren weren't exactly out of the woods yet, since Eren had a broken leg. But I was like, I already have a climax and resolution. How can I add more without messing up the story structure? Then I was like, well, I'll just write another one shot with its own climax and resolution._

 _It's kinda funny, since I wrote this while I was in the thick of a production of "Into the Woods" which sort of follows the same structure._

 _Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!_

* * *

 _FIGHT_

 _Part Two_

* * *

The boom came again.

For a second, Eren could almost convince himself that it was simply thunder, an oncoming rainstorm, though the sky was cloudless. Each rumble, each thump was a little louder.

He pressed his back against the wall and gave the ground an experimental push with his good foot, trying to heave himself into a standing position. Pain shot through his entire body, and he slumped back down, his eyes squeezed shut, his teeth clenched so hard he thought his jaw might crack.

"We've got to... get you out of here..." he heard Armin say.

Eren's eyes snapped open to glare at Armin, his breath coming in short huffs. "What... what are you talking about? I'm not about to desert our squad."

Armin crouched beside him. When he spoke, his voice was soft. "Please, just take a second, catch your breath."

Eren let out a long breath, trying to push away the sensation of liquid fire pouring over his leg.

Each breath was a struggle.

He watched, staring but barely seeing as Armin got to his feet and grabbed a short board from a pile of rubble. He then placed it against Eren's leg. Together they tied it on with strips of cloth, ripped from their uniforms.

It was quiet. Too quiet. Apart from the rumble of titan feet, the air was still, silent. No swish of gas, no whirr of cables. No voices.

"Where are the others?"

Armin flinched, then closed his trembling hands into fists. "T-they..."

"What? Armin, are they okay?"

His friend didn't reply. His eyes began to glaze over as he stared at nothing, his entire body shaking.

No. No, they couldn't—they couldn't be—

Eren grabbed Armin's arms, the movement jerky. "Just tell me what happened!" he shouted. His voice grated in his throat, harsher than he meant it to be.

"They died," Armin whispered, then buried his face in his arms. "All of them. I w-watched them die and I d-didn't do any-anything. I—I couldn't move!" He lifted his head, his breath hitching. "Don't you see? If you stay out here, in this condition, you'll die too!"

Eren felt his lip lift in a snarl. His breath jerked in and out. How dare Armin say that? How dare he say that they should run like cowards with their tails between their legs?

"Our orders were to stay until the people have evacuated," Eren said. "What's the point of becoming a soldier if we can't even do that?"

He heaved himself up, blinking hard as pain screamed up his leg. The world tipped, and Eren countered it by shooting off his cable and leaping into the air. He heard Armin's faint cries, telling him to come back, to just stop and think... but he couldn't. He wasn't a deserter. He'd fight these monsters until his last breath. After all they'd taken, he wasn't going to let them take Trost too.

He flew through the streets, wind whipping around his shaking body. The stones below him were flecked with blood, the only evidence left of his fallen companions. Acid rose in his throat, almost choking him. They didn't deserve to die like this. He forced his gaze back up, swallowed hard. His throat burned.

There.

There it was.

A titan, one of the seven meter ones, lumbering down the street.

Wiping a hand across its bloodied mouth.

Eren jerked to a stop, his body quivering, his mind refusing to make the connection. No. Not again.

Not again.

The world around him seemed to turn red as heat rushed through his body, overwhelming the pain.

Let's see how they liked becoming the hunted.

The titan turned to walk away, and Eren leaped from the wall, swinging out his anchor and letting out the gas. He shifted his weight from side to side, like he had practiced so many times. He flew past building after building, straining to catch up with the monster that had killed his companions, the people he had trained with for three years, the people he had learned to call his friends.

"Come back here, you bastard!" Eren screamed. "I'll kill you! I swear I'll kill you!"

His mind stuttered and he was twelve again, watching his mother's broken body lifted by the titan. Except this time he wasn't going to run away. He was going to rip that titan apart, he was going to—

The impact came before he even knew what was happening. He was flying through the air, then sickening agony slammed right through him. For a moment, he was held by nothing.

The ground flew up to catch him, its reach anything but soft. He heard the smack, saw the darkness splatter across his vision. A high pitched ringing filled his ears, blocking out all sound.

No... No! He couldn't pass out... he couldn't...

 _Eren... promise me you won't get killed._

Eren cracked opened an eye; the other was swollen shut. The world was nothing but a smear.

He opened his mouth, but his lungs refused to fill with air. Then he was choking down breaths of air, retching it back up, his body spasming. He gave a deep shudder, a movement that sent waves of pain rippling down his body. His mouth was filled with the coppery taste of blood. Where was the titan?

 _Move,_ he thought. _Just move, you stupid piece of garbage!_

But his body refused, it refused to stir from where he was sprawled across the street. Like an old dishcloth someone had thrown away. At every second he expected to feel the weight of some titan's giant fingers closing around his body.

 _Please... just move..._

It felt as if he were hovering on the brink of nothingness, slipping between pain and numbness.

 _Can't_...

Then came the whir of a cable, the hiss of steam, the thump of boots hitting the ground.

"Eren, seriously, what the hell? Are you _trying_ to get yourself killed?" A foot touched his side. "If that abnormal had any sense, you'd be dead by now!"

Jean's voice.

"I know you're a hardheaded idiot, but I thought you knew that this 3DM gear doesn't let you fly through buildings."

Eren opened his mouth, ready to spit out a retort, but no words came out, only a low moan. It wasn't a wimper. He didn't do that. Soldiers didn't do that.

"Jean, we-we've got to get... _gasp..._ get him out of here! He wouldn't listen to me... he..."

There was the sound of a snort, almost like a horse might make. "Well, that might be possible if I weren't running so low on gas. Idiot supply depots have holed themselves up at HQ and now titans are swarming all over the building. We'd be lucky to get ourselves out, much less him."

"We c-can't just leave him here to die!"

Eren gave a small shudder. Dizziness rattled through his brain, making him nauseous. How had he let himself become so broken? How had he let himself become a risk to his companions' lives? They couldn't take him with them... they...

 _If someone ordered you to die... would you?_

The words echoed through Eren's pounding head. Tears slipped out of his eyes, stinging his cheeks as they touched the fresh slashes of fire on his face. He didn't want to be left to die... all he wanted right now was his mother. His father. Their little house with the stream nearby and Mikasa calling him in for supper.

Then Eren felt an arm slip around his body, the touch surprisingly gentle. He felt himself being lifted. He couldn't even lift his gaze to try and meet Jean's, couldn't even choke out a protest.

"We shouldn't be too far away from the wall," Jean said. "Keep an eye out for titans."

Useless. Nothing but a piece of dead weight.

He was supposed to be able to stand on his own, to get up and fight, fight until he had given everything. To kill these monsters and help reclaim Trost. After his mother was killed, he swore he'd never run from them again.

Yet here he was.

The wind screamed in his ears as they flew on. _Useless_ , it said. _You're going to get them killed,_ it said.

Then cold darkness wrapped around him, smothered him.

It... it wasn't supposed to end like this.

* * *

Wall Maria—gone. Trost district—gone.

And they didn't even know why.

Eren limped down the narrow aisle of sturdy cobblestones, using his crutch as a substitute for his broken leg. The sun shone bright in the sky above, setting everything ablaze with color. It mocked him.

Two weeks since the battle for Trost. Two weeks spent limping around like some old, lame donkey.

They said that by trying to use is 3DM gear he had twisted the bone, furthering the damage. They said he might never fully heal that limp. That he might never be able to fight titans again.

One of the horses thrust her head over the stall door and let out a loud greeting. Eren felt his lips lift in a smile.

Every other part of his body sagged.

"Hello, Luck," he said softly, running his fingers down the funny strip of white that ran down her face.

In the two years he'd spent waiting to join his training, more than once Eren had found himself hanging around the Survey Corps' stables, hoping to catch a glimpse of these mighty warriors, adventurers. Eventually they had put him to work with the horses, a job he had found soothing, almost.

One of the mares, Luck, especially seemed to enjoy his visits. She was a bright copper color with a blond mane and tail, so different from the dull blacks and browns of the other steeds. Despite years of breeding to produce horses that were swift, yet steady around even the fiercest of titans, Luck still came out skittish. After a few years of trying to gentle it out of her, they gave up. From that time on, Luck stayed within the walls.

Luck made a soft noise in her throat, nudging at his hand, swiping her tongue across his palm. He reached down to pick up a few wisps of hay and her ears pricked forward.

Deserters. That's what they both were. Broken. Useless. They'd both snapped within seconds of meeting a titan.

Except Luck hadn't exactly asked for the chance, hadn't yearned for the chance to finally _make those bastards pay._

Eren gave a growl and kicked his leg against the stall door.

The broken one.

He bit back a scream of pain, tasting blood in his mouth where he'd bitten his lip. Tears pricked the corners his eyes.

Luck jerked, inhaling sharply.

"Sorry," Eren muttered. "Sorry... sorry..."

He slumped forward against the stall door, his face in his hands, his teeth ground together.

He'd sworn to protect the people, to give everything for them. But in the end, he had run away, like some damn _coward_. He'd let the titans break him.

"Armin said you'd be here."

Eren lifted his head to see Jean standing at the end of the row of stalls, arms crossed. Great. Just the person to rub this in his face.

Still, Eren spared him a glance. "What do you want, Jean?"

"You've been avoiding us for two weeks. Figured someone better talk to you before you turn into a vegetable." He muttered something under his breath, something like "Not that I was complaining, at first."

Eren didn't respond. For a long moment silence hung between the two, broken only by Luck's quiet huffs of breath. Eren kept his eyes fixed on a small clump of dirt near Luck's front hoof. A beetle was crawling over it.

"They said we get to choose tonight. Military Police, Garrison or Survey Corps."

Eren watched as the beetle paused, twitched it's antenna. "Guess you're off to the MPs, then. Easy life, no more titans. It's what you wanted, right?"

"I..." Jean sucked in a breath, then let it out. "I don't know anymore. Huh, at least you know where you're going."

"Yeah... back to the fields."

"Are you kidding me?" Jean let out a snort. "After three years of spouting off on how you're going to kill them all, you're just going to give up? I mean, Armin said you two took down a freaking titan!"

"That was Armin, not me." His fingers wrapped around the stall's edge, heat smoldering in his core, heat that burst out into a yell. "And..." He flung his hand down towards his leg. "Look what happened! I wasn't good enough; I almost got you _killed_!"

He saw Luck pin her ears back at his tone.

Jean stood straight up. "Stop with the crap, Jeager!" he exploded. "Stop being so damn selfish! You're alive _._ That's so much more than a lot of people got! And you're choosing to _mope_ about it?"

Eren glared. _Horseface,_ he thought. He opened his mouth ready to spit out some stupid comment, then stopped. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a long breath, then held out his hand and made a small clicking noise with his tongue. After a moment's hesitation, Luck reached forward to meet his outstretched fingers.

"Why did you save me?"

"It's my job to make sure suicidal blockheads like you don't get killed," Jean said, crossing his arms. Then he gave a "heh" and added, "Plus, Mikasa would've kill me if I hadn't gotten you out of there."

Eren pulled a face, though bitterness twisted in his stomach. She was always hinting that he wasn't strong enough to take care of himself... and now...

"So you broke your leg," Jean said, though his tone came out quieter than before. "I mean, at least you didn't lose a limb. You've actually got a chance, a chance to go back out there and try again. Or don't. Your choice."

Try again...

"You... you're strong, Eren. A lot stronger than me. I mean... you've lived right next door to the titans your entire life. It takes guts do something like that. Screw what the doctors said. You're going back out there."

Eren took a deep breath in, then let it out, his fingers playing over Luck's whiskered muzzle.

"Thanks," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. Then he looked up at Jean and grinned. "Horseface."

"You're a horseface," Jean spat back.

Luck snorted, as if saying, _Excuse me?_

And at that, Eren couldn't help but let out a small laugh.

Because sometimes... he had a chance. A chance to live. To try again.

And he'd be damned if he didn't take it.

* * *

 _A/N: And that's all she wrote! Hope you enjoyed._

 _I was originally going to have Armin be the one who comforted Eren, but after watching a certain OVA... (*cough* Unexpected Visitors) I began to take an interest in Jean... and now, man he's just my favorite character. Besides Armin, because he's so darn adorable. And Sasha. (And Marlowe.)_

 _Luck is based off a horse I used to ride, Lucky. She was prone to nervousness, and eventually the owners decided to sell her because of that. She was a sweet mare though and I thought it went along with what Eren was going through. And God forbid I write a story without a horse in it. XD_

 _Anyway, I'd love to hear your thoughts!_


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